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Sixty-five universities of the ACC, Big 12, Big Ten, Pac-12 and SEC and student-athlete representatives to begin era of autonomy

A group of 80 voting members from the ACC, Big 12, Big Ten, Pac-12 and SEC will meet formally in two meetings on Saturday, Jan. 17 at the NCAA Convention to begin a new era of autonomy aimed at protecting and improving the college experience for student-athletes.

This is the first autonomy meeting and it follows a decision by the NCAA Division I Board of Directors to grant self-governing prerogatives to the member institutions of these five conferences.

The sessions include representatives from each of the 65 member institutions of the ACC, Big 12, Big Ten, Pac-12 and SEC conferences and 15 student-athlete representatives discussing and voting on a series of proposals designed to improve the student-athlete experience on campus.

The autonomy session agenda features eight proposals and one resolution aimed at creating the optimal student-athlete experience in a fully integrated collegiate model in which athletics and academics are appropriately balanced. The proposals focus on the issues of cost of attendance, loss-of-value insurance, scholarship renewal, and concussion safety.

The commissioners of the ACC, Big 12, Big Ten, Pac-12, and SEC commented on the significance of the sessions: “This week represents a new chapter in our focus to help student-athletes learn, grow, and succeed. College sports are an American tradition, and we intend to provide these student-athletes with an enhanced level of support.”

About the Autonomy Session
The autonomy proposals will be discussed in a Discussion Forum on Saturday from 1-4 p.m. ET, followed by voting during a Business Session from 4-6 p.m. The chair of the group will be President Nathan Hatch of Wake Forest University.

Proposals can be approved by one of the following methods:
• 60 percent of all votes (48 votes) and a majority support from schools in three of the five conferences, or;
• A majority of all votes (at least 41) and simple majority support from the schools in four of the five conferences.

In addition to representatives from the 65 universities, 15 student-athletes will give a voice for the tens of thousands of current student-athletes in the five conferences. The inaugural class of student-athletes in the new autonomy process includes: